When remastering an experience as legendary as Shadow of the Colossus, you have to make a decision. Do you keep everything as close to the original version of the game as possible, or smooth out some of the source material’s rough edges? During our recent trip to Bluepoint Games in Austin, TX, we asked where exactly the team drew that line:

“The changes that come across in the game are very thoughtful changes,” says Randall Lowe, producer on the new Shadow of the Colossus. “We worked hard to preserve the way the game felt, while making the control scheme more comparable to the Uncharteds and the Horizons of the world.

“There are things we decided we weren’t going to change,” Lowe continues. “For instance, Wander standing still to fire a bow. Everything about Shadow is very deliberate. The way Wander moves throughout the world is heavy. It’s not light and fast and arcadey. He carries the burden of his actions in how he moves.

“Making the game the way you remember it is the most important mission we have, regardless of everything else.”

“We have a lot of passionate debates,” adds Peter Dalton, technical director on the new Shadow. “We ask ourselves: what does the user find endearing about this game, and are the changes that we’re making enhancing that feeling of nostalgia and love, or is it going against that sort of feel?”

Taking a measured approach to a remaster — or in the case of Shadow of the Colossus, a full-on rebuild – is a good strategy, agrees studio president Marco Thrush: “We listen to the fans. What issues did people originally have with the game? What are the biggest complaints? What are the biggest bugs that slipped through in the original release? What are the things we can fix?”

He goes on to offer an example of technical improvements having unintended consequences: “Originally, as a side effect of the framerate increase on the PS3 version of Shadow, a mistake was exposed where the third Colossi became more difficult. So, now we’ve had the chance to fix those kinds of things that slipped through initially. It gave us a second chance.”

The game’s iconic visuals have also received a monstrous overhaul. Take the fur — something you’ll be staring at quite a bit as you struggle to scale each of the game’s massive creatures.

“Obviously, the whole crux of being on a Colossus is being able to grip that fur and move through it, so a lot of time and effort was spent getting that perfect,” explains Mark Skelton, the game’s art director. “We spent a lot of time on the fur tech, trying to make the fur lay and clump just right, getting the shading right and making sure it moves right when you’re climbing through it.”

Fun fact: this fur is not actually an “art asset” by traditional means — it’s dynamically generated on the fly by the game’s engine, making it feel that much more organic as Wander clings to it for dear life.

Shadow of the Colossus on PS4 features a full suite of Photo Mode controls, allowing for the creation of some impressively dramatic scenes.

Speaking broadly, Bluepoint’s goal with any project is not just to recreate a game as faithfully as possible at higher resolutions. Thrush explains: “To me, it’s about preserving the memory of how a game was originally meant to be played. There’s the saying about rose-tinted glasses: you perceive it like it was better than it actually was, right?

“With Shadow of the Colossus we’re working on a remake – it’s not really a remaster. One, because we already did the remaster. And, two, it’s getting to the point where, like, going from PS2 to PS4, there are certain expectations. Just re-releasing it the same way we had on PS3 just wouldn’t have done the title justice. It deserves more. We’re lucky that Sony agreed with our stance on that.”

Bluepoint’s ground-up rebuild of Shadow of the Colossus is right around the corner, launching 7th February on PS4. Now, be on thy way.

As we all know, digital game sales have begun to tower over physical competitors. They have increased, but especially in the case of PC games. More and more gamers are opting to buy their PC games online in a number of different ways. This includes directly from publishers, through bundle sites, key resale sites, and of course platforms like Steam. As it turns out, there's a new kid coming up. Valve has cornered the market for quite some time, but this new competitor might just chip away at the loyal customer count.

This up and coming rival is called Robot Cache. The platform is already set to release some time the second quarter of 2018 and might give Steam a run for its money. On the surface, it seems much like any other platform. Robot Cache users will be able to buy games using credits, much like your Steam Wallet. An interesting difference from the get-go here is the amount of money that publishers will get from your purchase of games. Normally, publishers are charged a 30% distribution fee from platforms like Steam. Robot Cache will only charge 5%. Part of this is due to the fact that Robot Cache will take another 5% when a game is resold. You read that right; Robot Cache will allow gamers to resell their digital games.

Publishers will already get a break from Robot Cache on the initial distribution fees, but they will also make money from the resale of their games. When a Robot Cache gamer resells a digital game, they'll get 25% of the profits, publishers will get 70%, and Robot Cache gets 5%. This will undoubtedly draw a lot of publishers to the Robot Cache platform. Not only will they get paid more for the original sale, they also have potential future profits from games. This is equally good for the gamers, because having access to all kinds of different publishers means more games to buy and play!

The resale option is also fantastic for gamers. Imagine all the games that you've bought over the years on Steam. I am willing to bet that there are at least a few that you haven't played or played and realized it wasn't for you. They all begin to add up, cluttering your library and wasting space. If you had the option to take those games that you didn't enjoy or that you simply haven't played and make some money off them, you'd take advantage of it! Sure, you'd only get 25% of the money, but that's better than the shame of that title looking at you every day, shaking its head because you never played it.

While the simple ability to resell digital games is already fantastic and incredibly welcome, we do need to look at Robot Cache as a whole. The thing to consider is that it is built on the back of a cryptocurrency giant. Steam Wallets are technically virtual currency that you can use to buy games. All of Steam Wallet money is generated from real life currency. When you put money on your account, cash in a gift card, or sell some Steam trading cards, all of those dollars are generated from real money put into the system by a real person. Robot Cache's currency is going to be IRON, a virtual token which is essentially the equal to Ethereum. If you haven't heard of Ethereum, then you've probably heard of Bitcoin. It's a bit like that.

Robot Cache's IRON will be generated and sold ahead of the platform's launch. IRON will be the currency within the system that fuels everything. When you buy a game, it will take IRON, and when you sell a game you will receive IRON. You can also opt-in to mine for IRON with your gaming PC, which will reward you IRON when you reach certain milestones. It's hard to say how this will affect users and the system's creators. The biggest problem currently with cryptocurrencies is the simple fact that its worth is not stable. This could potentially lead to a confusing and complicated market with widely varying prices for titles. Users who better understand the system might be able to benefit more than those who still aren't knowledgeable.

I was incredibly interested in Robot Cache when I first heard it was going to be essentially Steam with digital game resales as an added bonus. I was even still interested when I heard it was going to be fueled by cryptocurrency. However, it really seems like a case where waiting and learning from others' experiences could end up being the best option. As the average gamer who doesn't have a ton of money to dump into new platforms, I'm going to be excited about the system from afar. If it looks like Robot Cache really has its users' happiness and best interests at heart, then I might start considering it more seriously.

No matter how Robot Cache's future works out, its inception no doubt has Valve's higher ups thinking. The advent of a system that allows for digital resales will have consumers wanting for more when it comes to Steam. Will the pressure lead to digital resales on Steam? We can only wait and see.

Following confirmation that Dragon Age executive producer Mark Darrah will also serve in the same role on Anthem, a new report has emerged that paints a picture of mounting pressure at BioWare. The next Dragon Age project was reportedly rebooted in the last year, and Anthem may not be released before the end of 2018, as previously announced.

According to sources speaking with Kotaku, Anthem will now launch in early 2019. The site notes the complexity of its launch, as BioWare needs to account for not just the release of the game itself, but an earlier release through EA Access, a beta test, and post-launch updates. If EA is still intent on getting the game out during the 2019 fiscal year, its launch could come no later than March 2019.

As noted above, Darrah has announced on Twitter he is now serving as the executive producer of both the new Dragon Age and Anthem, with Jonathan Warner as game director on Anthem. That's a change from last June, when Darrah stated that he was not involved with Anthem. Change at the studio has been afoot since the troubled launch of Mass Effect: Andromeda early last year, as BioWare Edmonton GM Aaryn Flynn announced his departure last summer, with Casey Hudson returning to the company to take up his position.

Kotaku says that the majority of BioWare is now working on Anthem in the lead up to its launch, with smaller teams continuing on Dragon Age and MMO Star Wars: The Old Republic. There is apparently some sense that a poor performance by Anthem could result in significant changes at BioWare. A major move was made last year in the wake of Andromeda's release, with developer BioWare Montreal being absorbed into EA Motive.

As for Dragon Age, the game has not been formally announced, though it has been briefly teased previously. The project was apparently rebooted in the last year in an effort to "implement more 'live' elements," as Kotaku put it, though there were no specifics shared about what form those will take. The report also makes note of concerns about anger directed toward EA by big-name YouTubers, as well as the outcry over Star Wars Battlefront II's contentious microtransactions.

We've contacted EA for comment but have not yet received a response. The company is set to share its latest quarterly earnings report on January 30, at which point it may share further details about BioWare's projects.

The latest Game Pass subscription offering is the next step in Microsoft's hardwareless future

Microsoft, at its heart, is a software and services company.

It always has been. It makes operating systems, word processors and offers Cloud services. That is at the core of the company's identity.

By contrast, Sony is a hardware business. It builds Walkmans and TVs and smartphones.

Of course, they dabble in each other's worlds. But this core difference is key to understanding the slightly different approaches both companies have to their gaming divisions.

Sony is rightly proud of its 73.6 million PS4 install base. The more PlayStations the company sells, the happier it is.

Microsoft wants to sell a load of Xbox Ones, too. Of course it does. But it's not the No.1 metric that it uses to judge its success. Microsoft - as a software and services business at its heart - wants to have a large audience of people using its software and services. That can be on Xbox One X, or PC, or (whisper it) even a PlayStation console.

I often encounter gamers bemused by the fact Xbox One exclusives are launching on PC. They suggest that this will only damage the overall appeal of Xbox One. But Phil Spencer and his team don't really care. If you're playing Sea of Thieves on PC, or Minecraft on Nintendo Switch, you are (in effect) a Microsoft customer. Customers are good.

That's why yesterday's Game Pass news was so significant. When Xbox announced the service, which delivers 100 games to subscribers for a monthly fee, natural comparisons were made to Netflix. But it wasn't really the same thing. Netflix is full of new, original content that you can only get via the service. Game Pass offered a load of catalogue, backwards compatible and indie games. That limited the audience to either niche gamers, or those that were new to the platform and wanted to dip into past products.

"Microsoft's cloud infrastructure could eventually be used to offer an on-demand gaming service that's accessible across multiple screens"

The news that all first-party Xbox games will be coming to Game Pass, including upcoming games on the day of their release, is a significant move. That's a big incentive to invest. If you were always going to pick up Sea of Thieves or Crackdown 3, the service already pays for itself for the next six months.

The initial challenge for Game Pass is the lack of upcoming first-party content. There are a handful of releases in the first half of 2018 (add State of Decay 2 to the above two games), and Phil Spencer teased new games in the Gears of War, Halo and Forza franchises. But to encourage a large number of people to invest in Game Pass, Xbox needs to deliver more unique software more frequently.

Spencer told Bloomberg last year that's exactly what the company is trying to do. He said that Xbox needs to grow and that he would "look forward to doing that". And current rumours of a new Fable and Perfect Dark games points to Microsoft investing in growing its first-party slate.

These games will take time, and that's fine. The reality is that Game Pass isn't going to revolutionise anything right away. For now, it will enhance Microsoft's value proposition and help differentiate it in its on-going efforts to chip away at PlayStation's dominance. It is a way for Xbox to put extra focus on its first-party exclusives (both new and old), without having to actually release more games. And it could even help broaden the console's appeal amongst a more mainstream customer.

Yet long term, Xbox is putting the pieces in place for a future without hardware. Microsoft's cloud infrastructure could eventually be used to offer an on-demand gaming service that's accessible across multiple screens, much in the way Netflix is today. It has the tools at its disposal to radically change how it distributes its content to gamers.

This isn't Xbox giving up. Far from it. This is just the company doing in games what it does so successfully elsewhere - create a strong platform from which to deliver high quality software.

HITMAN™ Patient Zero Campaign - The Vector, Colorado (Silent Assassin Suit Only)
Full walkthrough in (HD + 60FPS) quality of the game "Hitman" Game of the Year Edition (released in 2017). Highest graphic parameters were selected in game options for maximal visual game experience. Enjoy the video. Have a nice day.
About the new Patient Zero Campaign:
After the routine elimination of a target, a contingency plan to unleash a global pandemic is triggered and Agent 47 must race against the clock to prevent a virus from spreading. This four-mission campaign spans different locations in the game, each one re-worked from the original settings with new gameplay opportunities, disguises, characters, challenges, gameplay mechanics, AI behaviour and HUD elements. Bangkok, Sapienza, Colorado and Hokkaido look and feel completely different with a new time of day and new custom music created by the composer for Season One, Niels Bye Nielsen.

In any other game, a group of newbie adventurers would find themselves going up against nothing more notable than a particularly vicious fetch quest. Dauntless isn’t any other game. Here the monsters are massive and the combat’s intense right from the start.

There’s a reason I had jokingly referred to it as ‘Boss Battles: The Game’ before stepping up to play the PAX South demo. Currently, that reason was one of the game’s new behemoths, a massive rock-plated monster named Skarn.

When the team at Phoenix Labs set out to create Dauntless, their co-op action RPG, one of their main goals was to bypass the usual boring grind and get players right into the thick of things. To that end, players don’t waste time collecting ‘x’ frog teeth for random NPCs as they slowly level up. Instead they dive right into epic encounters against the massive enemies found amid the Shattered Isles.

Looking for a Fight

The team loads in on Skarn’s island and we set out to find him. Joining me on the hunt was the game’s combat designer, Chris Fox. I was more than happy to let him take point as we spread out to search for our quarry. I’d opted for the new war pike which wasn’t as effective against Skarn’s armor as the hammer Fox was wielding.

Once Skarn is spotted, a flare goes up and we rush to his location. At first I’m not seeing anything except some glowing rock fissures. Before I can ask what happens next the ground rips apart and Skarn emerges. Dwarfed by the lumbering rock lizard ahead of us, the party’s natural response was to all rush in and began swinging our weapons wildly. Skarn was unimpressed and proceeded to roll over us, inflicting massive damage with his boulder plates.

Stronger Together

Like any formidable boss fight, success in Dauntless requires teamwork and the proper strategy. Every behemoth has its own strengths and weaknesses which players must work together to identify and exploit. Even more important is the ability to spot a creature’s unique attack tells so you can evade their most powerful hits.

Later, Fox would tell me that this initial failure is part of the game’s learning curve. The first encounter with a behemoth will rarely be successful. Luckily, the game’s community is willing to put in the work necessary to make their slayers worthy of such legendary battles.

Dauntless is currently in closed beta. Phoenix Labs plans to move to open beta sometime in late Spring or early Summer with sign-ups available through their website. The game will be free-to-play at launch and feature cosmetic microtransactions for additional character customization.